Except as otherwise provided in this article, the lawfully permitted use of land or buildings existing at the time of the adoption of this chapter, including uses of land or buildings under a special permit heretofore issued by the Board of Appeals, may be continued, although such use does not conform to the standards specified in this chapter for the zone in which such land or building is located. Said uses shall be deemed nonconforming uses, except as otherwise provided by § 300-177.
Where no building is involved, the nonconforming
use of land may be continued; provided, however, that no such nonconforming
use shall be enlarged or increased, nor shall it be extended to occupy
a greater area of land than that occupied by such use at the time
of adoption of this chapter, unless specifically allowed by other
provisions in this chapter, nor shall any such nonconforming use be
moved in whole or in part to any other portion of the lot or parcel
of land occupied by such nonconforming use at the time of adoption
of this chapter; provided, further, that if such nonconforming use
of land or any portion thereof ceases for any reason for any continuous
period of more than 90 days or is changed to a conforming use, any
future use of land shall be in conformity with the provisions of this
chapter. No nonconforming use of land shall be changed to another
nonconforming use.
A.
A building or structure, the use of which does not conform to the use regulations for the district in which it is situated, shall not be enlarged or extended unless the use therein is changed to a conforming use (also see § 300-173).
B.
Such nonconforming building shall not be structurally
altered to an extent greater than 50% of its equalized assessed valuation,
unless such alterations are required by law; provided, however, that
such maintenance and repair work as is required to keep a nonconforming
building or structure in sound condition shall be permitted; and provided,
further, that any such nonconforming use may be extended throughout
any parts of the building which were manifestly arranged or designed
for such use at the time of the adoption of this chapter.
C.
A nonconforming use of a building may be changed only
to a conforming use.
D.
If any nonconforming use of a building ceases for
any reason for a continuous period of more than one year or is changed
to a conforming use, or if the building in or on which such use is
conducted or maintained is moved for any distance whatever for any
reason, then any future use of such building shall be in conformity
with the standards specified by this chapter for the district in which
such building is located.
E.
If any building in which any nonconforming use is
conducted or maintained is hereafter removed, the subsequent use of
the land on which such building was located and the subsequent use
of any building thereon shall be in conformity with the standards
specified by this chapter for the district in which such land or building
is located.
F.
Any gasoline filling station use which is a valid nonconforming continuing existing use pursuant to § 300-170 may apply to the Town Board for a special permit pursuant to § 300-46. Any permit issued pursuant to said § 300-46 is exempt from the limitations imposed by this section and § 300-173.
[Added 5-3-1994 by L.L. No. 14-1994]
A building that is conforming in use but does not conform to the height, yard or land coverage requirements of this chapter shall not be considered to be nonconforming within the meaning of § 300-172. No permit shall be issued that will result in the increase of any nonconformity in height, yard, space or land coverage.
If any building legally nonconforming in use
shall be destroyed by any means, it may be repaired or reconstructed
to the same size and on the same location or at the location specified
for new buildings in the district in which such use is located. All
repairs or reconstruction for such nonconforming use shall be completed
within two years of the date on which the destruction occurred.
Regardless of any other provisions of this chapter,
every sign which, after the adoption of this chapter, may exist as
a nonconforming use in any district shall be discontinued and removed
or changed to conform to the standards of said district within a period
of two years from August 19, 1958. Subject to the provisions of this
section, all of the provisions of this article shall apply to every
nonconforming sign. Signs for which a special permit has been issued
are not considered nonconforming signs.
Any building, extension or alteration for which
a permit has been duly granted, the construction of which has been
started before August 19, 1958, and the ground story framework of
which, including the second tier of beams, has been completed within
one year after the adoption of this chapter or amendment thereto,
may be completed in accordance with plans on file with the Building
Inspector, provided that such construction is diligently prosecuted
and the building is completed within two years of the adoption of
this chapter.
Any use lawfully existing on August 19, 1958, in the district in which such use is classified herein as a special permit use shall, without further action, be deemed to be a conforming use in such zone (see § 300-170).
It is the intent of this section that all office uses in residential structures should be clearly incidental and accessory to the main use. All such existing offices in residential structures which are legally conforming at the time of the adoption of this section may continue, provided that a special use permit has been granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals in accordance with standards set forth in § 300-76. Application for such special use permit must be made within 90 days of the adoption of this section.
